EU Observer: European Union diplomats on Wednesday (29 December) agreed that member states would only recognise representatives of the Ivory Coast appointed by the widely acknowledged winner of the country’s recent elections, Alassane Ouattara.
The move aims to ratchet up pressure on incumbent president Laurent Gbagbo to step down.November presidential elections, already postponed since 2005, indicated a victory for Mr Ouattara of 54 percent of votes in a second round. However, the ruling social democratic Ivorian Popular Front of President Gbago contested the results and claimed to be a victim of electoral fraud.
International observers rejected the claims and Mr Ouattara, a liberal and former International Monetary Fund economist, has been recognised as the victor by the EU, the UN, and the African Union. The Ivory Coast’s membership of the AU has been suspended as a result of Mr Gbago’s refusal to accept the results of the election. Read more at the EU Observer…..
